This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Villarreal have emerged as an interested party in Fulham talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic, as reported by Spanish outlet Fichajes.net.

The Serbian striker has already netted 21 goals in 18 Championship appearances this season, proving once again to be excellent at this level of football.

Mitrovic has scored more goals than 11 entire teams in the second-tier this season, registering a further five assists in Fulham  colours.

 

 

The Cottagers currently find themselves at the top of the Championship table and are a point clear of Bournemouth in second.

More importantly, Fulham are nine points ahead of West Brom in third, opening up a comfortable gap in their search for automatic promotion.

Three of our writers here at FLW have shared their thoughts on Villarreal's interest in the prolific forward, and whether his departure would dent Fulham's expected push for promotion.

Adam Jones

Aleksandar Mitrovic is a gargantuan figure at Craven Cottage, so Fulham would be fools to let him go unless he pushes for a move.

Although Rodrigo Muniz has shown signs of promise, with the likes of Harry Wilson, Fabio Carvalho and Neeskens Kebano able to create and score, the loss of Mitrovic would have a bad impact on morale and that's something officials in west London will consider if they go to the negotiating table with Villarreal or another interested side.

Scoring 21 goals in 18 games, there's no doubt they will gain automatic promotion back to the Premier League if he stays fit and in form, a more lucrative prospect financially than selling the Serbian international.

His contract doesn't run out until 2026 either, so there's no rush to sell him and under Marco Silva, he's likely to thrive in the top flight if they can get there. The Cottagers have failed to stay afloat in the top tier in recent years, but getting him in form could give them a real chance of staying there.

So for the long term, he has to remain with the second-tier side.

They would probably get in a sufficient replacement who could still guide the Cottagers to the Premier League if he was to go, but it just isn't worth selling him at this stage unless an unbelievable offer comes in.

Charlie Gregory 

It’s no surprise that Aleksandar Mitrovic is drawing admiring glances from elsewhere, especially considering the kind of form he is currently in.

He cannot be stopped in the Championship, so if Fulham were to lose him then it would be a huge blow to their side and for their promotion chances.

The club do have a squad that is capable of staying at the top end of the table and mounting a promotion bid still. However, you cannot understate the importance of his goals. He’s contributed so much in front of goal this year that his absence would surely be felt.

They could still score but probably much less frequently and that is bound to have an effect. It means that if he did decide to head to Spain, the Cottagers may find it a lot harder to maintain their momentum and stay at the top end of the second tier.

Ned Holmes

There are no two ways about it, losing Mitrovic would be a massive blow for Fulham.

Yes, they've got some ridiculous depth and a squad packed with talent but the Serbian striker is on course to have the best season in Championship history in terms of goalscoring.

He's been back to his ridiculous best this term and dominated second-tier defenders, bagging 21 goals in 18 appearances already.

Silva does have the likes of Bobby Decordova Reid and Rodrigo Muniz as options but neither are anywhere near as good as Mitrovic is right now.

It would be a massive dent to their promotion hopes to lose him but that's not to say they couldn't still get promoted without him.